The Immortal
by Aofie
Summary: When Hoggle tells Sarah that the world she left behind is in chaos due to Jareth's departure, Sarah feels compelled to revisit the Labyrinth in order to set things right. This is mainly a romancedrama fic, with a bit of action thown in. Please review!
1. Chapter 1

**The Immortal**

Prologue

"You have no power over me." That simple sentence, those small short words had meant so much. With a flash Jareth transformed into the owl and whisked Sarah and Toby home. Just as the Esher room had collapsed around them moments earlier, Jareth's world, his creation collapsed. He knew that left him only one option, and he found himself flying around Sarah's head in her hallway as the grandfather clock struck twelve. As the chimes ended, he flew from the room to the freshness of the outside air, now certain that the two were safe. He had lost, but he didn't feel defeated. Almost the opposite, he felt as though he had gained something so great, that any wrong move would shatter it. He flew to the tree opposite Sarah's room and waited.

She soon entered, and he watched her putting all of her childish toys and dreams away. His eyes pricked when he saw the beast appear. As her room filled with creature's from the Labyrinth, Jareth bristled, it was HIS Labyrinth, and it was most likely gone. Jareth looked at the dwarf that was presently in Sarah's arms, engulfed in a huge hug. Jareth felt an envy so great that it almost consumed him. He was certain that the dwarf had not told Sarah the true story of the Labyrinth or of the rest of the Underground, how it came to be, or even of his part in it. It made him feel sick with loss and he flew from the tree high into the air as he couldn't stomach watching the scene before him.

It was some time before he returned, this time to a branch that was close to the window sill. He watched her enter and hopped closer to the window, his eyes followed her every movement as she came towards him and opened the window. His eyes locked with hers, and they connected.

Chapter One 

Sarah looked at Toby and sighed.

"Its times like this Toby, that I would rather have lost!" With a sidelong glance at the window sill she said, "And that doesn't mean anything if you're listening, except that I am exceptionally frustrated right now."

The owl on the window sill hopped from one foot to the other and glared at her with a knowing stare. Sarah often wondered if she was right in thinking that the owl was Jareth. Since Toby's kidnapping a year ago the owl had made itself a permanent fixture in Sarah's life. It had made her uneasy at first as it isn't usual for an owl to come so close to a human, and when Sarah's suspicions had first begun she had tried repeatedly to shoo it away. The owl had remained though, and she had grown used to it's company. It was odd, but Toby (who had grown into a terrible two year old) loved the owl and was always fascinated by it. Except for now that is.

Sarah looked at Toby who was lying on his stomach on the floor of her bedroom pounding his fists into the carpet and screaming at the top of his lungs. He was a master at throwing these tantrums and it had been his new thing for a few months now. This one had started because Sarah had left him alone in the living room in an attempt to finish some homework. Toby had followed her up the stairs and into her room where he had thrown himself at her feet. Sarah often wondered why it was that Toby always wanted to be close to her. Ever since their return from the Labyrinth Toby had clung to Sarah, treating her more like a mother than an older sister. It had started the night they returned. Sarah had been in her room enjoying the company of Hoggle, Ludo, Sir Didymus and her other friends from the Labyrinth when her stepmother had knocked on her door. Sarah opened the door very angrily as her friends had abruptly disappeared at the interruption and was faced by her stepmother holding a howling Toby.

"Sarah, did something happen tonight?" She had asked. "I just woke up and saw Toby standing up in his crib so I went to pick him up and he started crying. He won't stop." Karen had sounded desperate, and Sarah knew that she was the last person who Karen would turn to, especially after the argument they had earlier.

Sarah had looked at Toby and he reached out for her and grabbed her hair. Instead of pulling away as she used to, Sarah took Toby from her stepmother and hugged him. "Its okay", she whispered. "You're safe now." Toby had stopped crying and when Sarah had put him back to bed he fell instantly to sleep. This had left her stepmother flabbergasted.

"Sarah, tell me what happened."

"Nothing happened. I just changed my mind, that's all." Sarah looked at Toby who was curled up next to Lancelot, the bear which up until that evening had been Sarah's most favourite thing in the world, and softly touched his cheek.

"Changed your mind about what?" Karen asked her softly.

Sarah looked at her. "Maybe he isn't so bad after all." She had said and left the room. That had been the first night the owl had come. When Sarah had returned to her bedroom, she saw him on a branch outside her window. Since that day, the owl was always there. Not a day had passed that she had not seen him.

That had been the beginning of a very big change in Sarah. She had found over the past year that stories of make believe and fantasy didn't really satisfy her anymore, probably because she had lived through one of her own and could visit it whenever she wished. Instead of acting, her interests had turned to social work and surprisingly to childcare. Sarah was now Toby's sole babysitter, mostly because he wouldn't stand for anyone else, but also because Sarah truly enjoyed his company. Toby was the only other person who had been to the Underground, and Sarah found that comforting, even though she knew that Toby was probably too little to ever remember it. Still she delighted in telling him the story over and over again and he enjoyed hearing it more each time. Toby's first word had been Sarah, and Jareth and Hoggle had come not long after that.

Toby's cries shook Sarah back to reality. "Oh come Toby. Get over it." She snapped. Toby stopped for a moment and looked at Sarah, who looked back with an expression which could only mean 'I won't stand for this'. Toby wasn't impressed however and he started bellowing again louder than ever.

On the window sill, Jareth shuffled his feet and turned his back on the room. Sarah laughed.

"See Toby, even Jareth doesn't want to see you right now!" Sarah got up from her desk and moved to him, stroking his feather's, "Can't you talk to him?"

Jareth abruptly turned and flew down into Sarah's bedroom resting not more than two inches in front of Toby's face. Sarah flinched, she was so sure that the owl was Jareth and though she had grown to love him, where Toby was concerned she still didn't trust him.

"Don't hurt him, Jareth." She said softly.

The owl looked closely at Toby, who had stopped his tantrum and was gazing at him. Toby put out his hand and poked the owl's feathers.

"Jareth." he said, cocking his head to the side as the owl had done.

There was a sharp knock on the door. In a flurry of white and brown feathers the owl had gone. Sarah looked at Toby who was on the verge of tears.

"Come in" she said as she moved to pick him up.

"Is Toby in here?" Karen asked as she opened the door.

Toby wrapped his arms around Sarah's neck. "Yes." She said. "Please take him off my hands for awhile, he just had another tantrum and I'm not sure how much more I can take."

"Yes, I thought I heard him." Karen smiled "I was afraid his lungs would burst." Karen took Toby from Sarah and he wriggled out of her grasp, before tearing down the stairs. Karen sighed and followed him shutting the door behind her.

Sarah moved to the window and leaned out of it.

"They've gone, you can come back now." She called into the wind. "Jareth?" She whispered. But there was no answer.

Sarah pushed her hair out of her face and ducked just as a branch came flying back in her direction. She trudged her way through the trees that grew at the back of the park near her house, it was nearing winter and the ground had turned to a carpet of thick leaves lined with mud. It was freezing. The sun had sunk low in the sky and covered the trees in a glow of orange light. She wasn't exactly sure what she was looking for, only that she was worried and searching for some kind of sign that he was or had been here. So far she hadn't found a thing. Not a footprint, not a feather.

Jareth had been missing for several weeks now. Sarah hadn't seen him since the afternoon in her bedroom with Toby. She didn't want to admit it to herself but she knew something was terribly wrong and she was severely worried about him. Sarah couldn't understand why she cared so much about him. After all he had taken her brother from his home, threatened to turn him into a goblin, then drugged her to stop her from getting him back, and then told her that he was being generous! Sarah shook her head in frustration. Deep down she knew that the whole incident a year ago had been all her own fault. She had asked him to take Toby away, and she had known what he would do to him. Too bad she hadn't really meant it. One lesson Sarah had learned the hard way, she never said things she didn't mean anymore. In a way she was thankful to Jareth for he had forced her to grow up and accept things for what they are. She knew now what a frivolous and stupid girl she had been.

When Jareth had first come to her as the owl she had been wary of him, that much was true. She still didn't trust him, (especially not with Toby) but she felt a strange connection with him that she felt with no other. Since he had disappeared, Sarah had found it increasingly difficult to concentrate and to keep her mind focused on what she should be doing. Like now for example, she grimaced as she realised how late she was. She was supposed to be babysitting Toby tonight, and she was supposed to have started ten minutes ago.

By the time Sarah got home she was half an hour late. Her stepmother and father were waiting for her on the doorstep.

"I am so sorry, I really lost track of time." Sarah blurted.

"We were really worried about you." Karen said quietly. "You're never late anymore."

Sarah felt an awful pang of guilt. "I just let my mind run away from me. It won't happen again, I promise."

"You had better go in and talk to Toby, Sarah. He hasn't seen you all day, he kept asking if you had run away." Her father said. "We have to leave now, the number's on the fridge." He looked closely at Sarah and kissed her on her forehead. "You can talk to us about anything you know."

"I know I can." Sarah said. "I'd better talk to Toby, you two have a good time." She turned and left them on the porch looking back at her.

Sarah poked her head around the corner of her bedroom. Toby was standing by the windowsill gazing out into the growing darkness.

"Toby, I'm here." She said softly.

He ran across the room and threw himself into her arms. "Thought you'd gone with him." He mumbled.

"With Jareth?" Sarah asked. Toby nodded furiously.

"I was looking for him. In the park. I didn't find him though."

Toby looked up at her, "Can we look Sarah? Right now?"

Every part of Sarah told her that what she was doing was irresponsible. It was well past dark and very cold. Definitely no place for a two and half year old. Still she was so desperate to find Jareth and she knew that she would have no peace of mind until she found him. Besides Toby was the one who had suggested it. She had bundled him up tight, and had a firm grip on his hand.

"You are not to tell mommy or daddy about this okay Toby? You know they wouldn't like it don't you?" Sarah knew this was unfair to say but couldn't stop herself. "And they might not let me look after you anymore if they found out."

Toby nodded solemnly.

They had reached the woods, more like a large patch of trees than actual woods but it was dark and still quite thick. Sarah was certain that if he was to be found it would be here. This place held a kind of magic that Jareth would be drawn to.

"Should we call his name?" asked Toby. "Mommy does that when she can't find me."

Sarah shook her head. "No honey, I don't think he would come out if he heard us."

"Why not?"

"Because I think he's mad at me." And with that Sarah's worry spilled over and tears filled her eyes and poured silently over her cheeks.

Toby wrapped his arms around her legs, hugging her as tight as he could.

Sarah started as she heard a noise, a rustling followed by what was unmistakably an owl hooting.

"Jareth?" She cried, breaking away from Toby and running in the direction of the noise. "Jareth come back. Please." She ran through the trees until she was out of breath, and sank down at the foot of an old oak. "I'm sorry" She whispered. Her hair was tangled and she had got caught on a branch that had ripped her jacket and left a small gash on her cheek. She bent her head to the trunk of the tree and wept her fear and sorrow into it.

It was then that she remembered Toby.

"Toby?" She cried. "Toby?" She raced back in the direction she had come, faster and more frantic than before. "Toby where are you?" There was no answer. Sarah stopped and listened as hard as she could for some sound. There was the rustling again and then the hooting that followed. Sarah tried with all her might not to follow the noise in her desperation. The sound of her breathing seemed louder than ever and her heart pounding drowned out all other noise.

After what seemed like hours she heard it.

"Sarah?"

He sounded so close to her. "Toby, stay still. Okay honey? I'm coming for you." Sarah moved through the trees slowly this time, scarcely breathing in case she lost him. "Toby?"

"I'm here Sarah." Toby called.

Sarah pushed through a thorny bush and came face to face with Toby, sitting on the muddy leafy ground. Next to him was a white and brown shape which disappeared into the night at the sound of her voice.

Sarah ran to him and picked him up out if the mud and hugged him tight.

"Toby, I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry. Are you okay? Are you hurt?" She put him down carefully and examined him.

"You shouldn't have left me Sarah." Toby said.

"I know, I'm sorry. You must have been so scared." She hugged him again.

"No. If you hadn't run away, you would have seen him."

"What do you mean?"

"When I was lost. Jareth found me. But he flew off when you came."

"Are you sure Toby? Are you sure it was him?" Sarah said pulling him closer towards her.

Toby nodded slowly. "Yes."

This was not quite the news that Sarah hoped for. Still it seemed as if Jareth was alive, and her worry eased slightly. Her fear however had escalated.

"Come on, lets go home."

"Sarah, aren't you going to bring Jareth back?" Toby asked pulling on her arm.

"I think I'll find him when he wants to be found." She answered dimly.

Sarah tucked Toby into his bed hours after his bedtime and tried not to think about what could have happened that night. She felt sick and disgusted with herself for leaving him like that.

Toby looked up at her and said. "Sarah, find Jareth tomorrow?"

"I'll do my best Toby. If you need me just call okay?" She kissed him, pulling his covers up to his chin. He put a hand up to her face and touched her cheek.

"You got hurt." He whispered.

Sarah touched the gash on her cheek.

"It's okay honey, it doesn't hurt." She lied.

Sarah fell into bed minutes later, having not even undressed herself.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two 

Sarah was woken in the morning by a strange tapping noise that sounded like someone rapping on glass. Still befuddled by sleep, Sarah mumbled something incoherent and threw her pillow over her head. However the tapping sound grew louder and more insistent and was accompanied by someone calling her name. Sarah tugged off her covers and sleepily sat up.

"What is it?" She mumbled.

"Sarah?" The voice was coming from her mirror. Then Sarah realised who it was. She jumped out of bed, completely awake now and stumbled over to her desk.

"Hoggle?" She asked in amazement. "What are you doing here? I haven't seen you in ages." Sarah felt a warmth spread through her body at the sight of her friend, which seemed to dull out the pain she felt from the night before. That was until she looked at him more closely, Hoggle looked very small and thin. He had lost weight since Sarah had last seen him and he looked worried.

"What's wrong Hoggle?" She asked.

"Sarah. I shouldn't be asking this, but I really need a favour." He said flatly. "You'll probably say no of course but I just thought I should ask."

"Why would I say no? You're my friend aren't you?" She asked.

"Yes Sarah, we are friend's but" Sarah cut him off.

'Why don't you come through the mirror and we'll talk about it."

Hoggle sighed. "I can't come through the mirror Sarah. The magic isn't strong enough. And I have ter be quick cause this connection is shaky and it might break at any moment."

"What is it Hoggle?"

"It's Jareth." Hoggle sighed. "We need him back, desperately. And no one has seen him since you beat him last year. No one that is, cept you."

"No one has seen him?" Sarah was stunned. "But he can't have, I mean I only ever saw him as an owl. And I'm not even sure it was him."

"Oh it was him alright. Who else would it be? He wants to stay close to you no doubt. And well he's probly afraid ter go home."

"Why would he be afraid?" Sarah wondered. Hoggle grunted in frustration.

"I can't go into details now, there isn't time. Will yer help?"

"Well, I guess? But Hoggle, I haven't seen Jareth for ages. Well I might have seen him last night.."

Hoggle looked closely at Sarah.

"Sarah, you have ter bring him back. Back to the Underground."

"What? But how can I do that? And besides, I haven't seen him, I think he's angry with me." Sarah felt a thud in her chest as she said this.

"Sarah, his magic is almost non existent right now, he has spent too long as an owl and he is weakening. He knows that he needs to come home, so if you can find him you should be able to bring him back here. But Sarah, we will only have one chance at this. You need to have Jareth here by this time tomorrow or it will be too late." And with that Hoggle faded away.

"Wait. Hoggle? How do I find him?" Sarah hand moved up to touch the mirror where Hoggle's face had just been.

"Great" she said to herself. "I've been trying to find him for ages, now I learn I have a deadline? And by the sounds of things I have to go back to the Labyrinth. I place I had happily left behind." But as soon as Sarah had said those words she knew she didn't mean them. While she was truly happy since she had returned from the Labyrinth she was also lonely. Despite the feeling of trepidation she had about returning, she felt herself come alive with excitement at the prospect. There was just one problem.

When Jareth had first come to Sarah as an owl, she had been more than a little apprehensive. In fact she was downright scared. When Sarah had fought her way through the Labyrinth a year earlier she hadn't been exactly afraid of him. Which as far as Jareth was concerned was probably part of the problem. But she had felt anger towards him; obviously for taking Toby (although that anger was later redirected at herself) but also for the way he had treated her. He mocked her. Almost everything he had said or done was mocking. Sarah found him to be an excellent companion as an owl; in that form she loved him very much. But what would he remember? Would he remember anything? Was she helping the person whom she despised most in the world? Sarah shook her head. She only knew one thing. She could not let him die. She felt strongly enough for him to not let that happen. Sarah pulled her thoughts together and headed for the bathroom.

Much later as she was walking back to the patch of woods where Toby had seen Jareth the night before she realised that it didn't really matter if he remembered or not. Jareth would always be Jareth. Once he had returned to his human form he would either be exactly as he was before, in which case she would simply return home. Or if he was different, if he had changed - … Sarah refused to think about that. Instead she turned her thoughts towards finding him first. Then she could worry about what he would say and how he would behave. Besides, Sarah did have an added advantage. She knew Jareth was in love with her.

Sarah winced as a branch brushed across the gash on her cheek. She had come to the small clearing where Toby had found Jareth the night before. Or had Jareth found Toby? Sarah wasn't sure. She had been to this spot five times already and was coming close to giving up. It was dusk and Sarah had been searching for him all day.

"It's not fair" She muttered to herself, and then she called out, "Come on! I know you love it when I say that, it gives you a reason to mock me!" Only silence answered her. Sarah sank down to her knees and then sat at the foot of a tree much like she had the previous night.

"I'm sorry." She whispered. "I'm really sorry. Please come home."

It seemed like she waited for hours. Eventually Sarah fell asleep, her head rested against the tree trunk, her legs splayed out in front of her and her hair falling like a waterfall around her face. When she woke up Sarah had an uneasy feeling like she was being watched. She swept her hair out of her face and found herself staring into a pair of bright eyes. It was him, still in the form of an owl.

He was resting on the top of Sarah's legs only a few inches from her face. Sarah lifted her head slowly, trying not to startle him.

"Jareth? Can you understand me?" She whispered. The owl gave a small hoot, and hopped closer.

"You understand that we have to go home? I mean you have to go home. I have to take you?" Jareth cocked his head and hooted again. He was looking rather shabby, his feathers were falling out and he was dangerously thin.

"Jareth it's time to go. Hoggle will be coming for us soon." Sarah checked her watch. "Oh my god, really soon, Jareth we have to get home now!" Sarah stood slowly and Jareth hopped to perch on her hand. Hoggle was right then, she thought. He will come with me. Slowly Sarah set off for home.

They had made it back to Sarah's house with only a few minutes to spare, As they were climbing in her bedroom window, dawn started to break. They waited in front of the mirror.

They were silent as the last few minutes past. Then there was a ripple of movement in the mirror and Hoggle's form appeared before them.

"Sarah, you must hurry we don't have much time left. I see you managed to find him."

Sarah smiled grimly, "I think he wanted to be found Hoggle. Despite his reluctance I believe that he knows he has to go back." She paused, "How do I do this? The last time I went to the Labyrinth it simply appeared before me. That was his doing, I haven't exactly walked through a mirror before."

"Its quite simple." Hoggle said. "All you must do is take my hand. The problem lies in if you believe that you can. That's why no one ever comes this way, its too hard for most people to believe."

"And he will come through with me?" Sarah asked.

"He will, but you must keep contact with him Sarah."

Sarah closed her eyes and reached out her hand keeping her other firmly gripped on Jareth. She felt a strange sensation as if her arm had been plunged into icy water. When she opened her eyes she discovered that she was back in the ruins of the Escher room as she had last seen it, Hoggle was standing before her, his hand still in hers. For a few moments Sarah thought she had left Jareth behind, she frantically looked around the ruins and found him sprawled in a corner, back in human form. She knelt before him and took one of his gloved hands in hers. Even through the fabric his hands felt like ice and Sarah could tell that he didn't have much time left. As she went to remove his gloves, to warm his hand with hers, Hoggle stopped her.

"Sarah, you can't. You can't take them off." Sarah started and dropped his gloved hand.

"Why not?" She asked softly.

"That's where his magic is, it's the only thing keeping it all in."

Sarah could not move her eyes from his crumpled and silent form, still clad in the white feathers she had last seen him in. "Will he wake up?" She whispered. "Is it too late?"

"It's not too late for him, but the magic is leaving him and you must act quickly or he will die and all of us with him, including you Sarah."

"What do I have to do?" She said, not moving her eyes from Jareth.

"You have to enter his mind. He has locked himself away somewhere, some place deep in his mind, and he won't come out unless you bring him out Sarah."

"Why would he listen to me?" She said softly. Hoggle stepped closer to Sarah and turned her face towards him.

"Because he loves you. You know that. All of this has happened because he loves you." Hoggle said as if it was a simple fact that could not be argued.

Sarah closed her eyes. "Tell me what to do."

It was a lot simpler than she first realized, once the initial fear was over it was easy to slip inside him as though his mind was nothing more difficult than a door to enter through. She could feel it, feel him, his mind working as a slight breeze played across her hair and she let her own mind be calmed by it. She was afraid to open her eyes. As soon as she did the confusion hit her.

It was as if all the confusion in her own mind was made corporeal and stood in the one room. It was so white, everything was so white, and there was so much movement. As her eyes adjusted the confusion settled somewhat, she became aware of colours flashing and dancing before her eyes. Despite the urgency of the situation she could not bring herself to move, as she was filled with an unexplainable terror. It was then that she realized where she was. The crystal ballroom.

Sarah willed herself to move, first her arms then her legs and torso recovered from their paralysis. Of course he would have gone here, this is where they had danced, this is where they had looked into each others eyes and understood the truth between them and this was where she had run away from him. Her memories of this place were mostly of haziness and a strange sick feeling, which she now knew to be the drugs he had forced upon her. She often wondered what would have happened to her and Toby if she had not looked into his eyes that night, it was as if a certain clarity had come over her and she knew she had to make a choice. She chose Toby. It seemed as if Jareth had chosen her or nothing, and was now wallowing in the depths of his memories as if that was all he had left. She had to find him.

Sarah wove her way through the ballroom, only dimly aware that she was wearing the same dress as she had on her last visit to this place. What she was acutely aware of was that Jareth was nowhere to be seen, which didn't make any sense if this was his memory. She kept seeing flashes of royal blue, but as soon as she focused on them they disappeared. This went on for what seemed like hours, as she passed between couples and pushed her way through the crowds only to see what may have been him disappear behind a pillar or a couple of masquerade dancers twirling fanatically. Sarah felt like stomping her foot, but was acutely aware that it would do no good and it was somewhat undignified to do so in a memory of Jareth's. For a few moments she just paused, as the dancers twirled and the colours flew past her. Sarah closed her eyes, opened them and put out her hand.

"Stop" she murmured, stretching her hand out in front of her like she was encouraging Jareth to step out of the confusion and take it. "Stop" she repeated more definitely, and as she spoke the room slowed, the colours blurred and she felt things grind to a firm and definite halt around her. And then he was in front of her, and everyone else had vanished.

To begin with, he just looked at her. Looked her up and down, just as he might have years ago when it all started. Looked at her like he was appraising her, or sizing her up, and then he spoke.

"How did you find me Sarah?" he said softly, and a shiver ran up the length of her spine.

"What are you doing here?" she whispered.

Jareth cocked his head to one side.

"Isn't that a question for me Sarah? You are inside my mind after all."

She looked at him closely, up and down just as he had done a moment ago. He was exactly as he had been to her before. Arrogant, cocky, stunning, powerful, terrifying. Dressed in the royal blue jacket from before, sparkles flying, hair identical right down to the blue streaks. And his eyes, one sharply blue, one soft brown, boring into her own as if there was no one else in the world save for them. It struck Sarah suddenly that this was an act. This was his way of still having power over her even now, even after everything that had happened, even though he was so close to death and to taking her with him.

"You have to come home Jareth." She stated softly, "We have played here long enough don't you think?"

Jareth eyes deepened and he let the act drop. Sarah could see his face lengthen and his body draw up, as if he had nothing left and had long been denied of any proper nourishment. Then her mind blurred and finally settled into darkness.


	3. Chapter 3

_A/N- I changed the end of chapter two slightly.. just to let you know. This chapter is very expositiony for which I apologise, but I promise to give some good Sarah/Jareth interaction soon._ Chapter Three 

When Sarah awoke she found herself curled up neatly like a cat at the foot of a rather large four poster bed. She stretched slowly out, taking in her surroundings. Obviously what magic Jareth had left was enough to restore the Labyrinth to its original splendour, as the room they were in was very definitely a part of the castle. The bed, whilst big was cosy and warm, and took up a good part of the room. At first Sarah thought the bed was empty, but as she got up she noticed a slight movement coming from under the blanket. This was his bedroom then. It wasn't what she had expected. The room was light and airy, with one big window on the far wall. She had expected him to have a large bedroom, filled with extravagant fabrics and furniture. She turned her attention to the beds occupant.

Jareth was barely visible under the covers as he was terribly thin, so much so that when Sarah pulled the covers away from him, she could see his bones protruding from his body in a way that was grotesque. Sarah was vividly reminded of the pictures of concentration camp prisoners from the second world war. She pulled the covers back up and softly stroked his cheek.

"Sarah?" Hoggle appeared in the doorway with a mug in his hand. "I thought you might like this"

She looked at him blankly, and slowly took the mug from his hand. "Will he live?" She asked softly.

"Perhaps. It's really too early to tell."

"But the magic is back. The Labyrinth has been restored." Sarah said, stroking Jareth's hair gently.

"You haven't looked outside yet have you?" Hoggle asked. "Go and look outside Sarah."

She moved to the window. The Labyrinth itself was still in ruins, both the inner grass labyrinth and the outer brick labyrinth were in shambles. The outer wall was still in tact thankfully, and Sarah could see where Sir Didymus's bridge used to be. There were no signs of all the creatures that used to live there.

"Hoggle, where are all the goblins?"

"Most of them fled to outside the wall, when he left. There wasn't much past the ruins of the Escher room to keep them here, and they were forced to leave. Dead stupid they are anyway, they've barely been able to survive outside the wall. There's only about a hundred left altogether."

"So all the magic has been able to restore is the castle?"

"Frankly I didn't even think he would manage to recreate his bedroom." Hoggle shrugged. "He is a lot stronger than I took him for."

"What happened to being afraid of him?" Sarah asked.

"Nah, I have never really been afraid of him. That was just an act. Jareth likes all his victims to have a bit of help, that's all. Still, I helped you far more than is reasonable. As a result, his anger with me was no act at all. I expect that's why he drugged you."

"Victims." Sarah stated flatly. "That bastard." And a surge of old anger flowed through her. "How many, Hoggle? How many before me?"

Hoggle looked at her closely. "There were none like you before Sarah. Most of them were foolish children, who meant exactly what they had said and only came searching out of fear or intrigue. None of them came close to succeeding. Even with help. None of them ever had any idea of the Labyrinth, before they came here. They just wished people away. So as punishment he took them."

"What about the book? Didn't they have the book?" Sarah asked.

"No, the book was special. It was only for you. See he saw you one day playing in the woods and fell in love with you then, and he wanted a way make you come to the labyrinth. So he wrote the book and planted it in your room for you to find. He knew you would never wish Toby away without the idea being in your head first. I think he knew that you were the one to win, I mean he told you how to beat him didn't he?"

"But why didn't he just take me away? Why such an elaborate plan that could only end with me hating him, and destroying his home?"

"The magic doesn't work like that Sarah, he can't just take you away. It has it's limits. He can visit your world as much as he likes, although only for short periods of time… but he can't take people willy nilly. Its too hard. And besides, you would have hated him anyway."

Sarah sighed softly. "I don't hate him. I never did. I can't explain why either, I just don't understand why he couldn't just leave me there."

"But how was he ever going to see you again, if he left you there. Once you force your way into the Underground, it becomes increasingly difficult to return to your world for long periods of time. He can't return permanently. Why did you think he remained an owl for over a year, despite what it was doing to him? He can't sustain human form in that world for more than a few minutes at a time."

"What are you saying Hoggle? That he's human?"

Hoggle gestured for her to follow him out of the room. Sarah put down her mug (which she had not touched) and followed him down the long corridor. Hoggle led her into a small sitting room.

'I thought it best not to talk about this in front of him, I don't know if he can hear or not but I sure know that he wouldn't want me to tell you this. He's practically forgotten it himself by now. Still I reckon you should be told, since you both came from that world, an you may be able to help him get better an all.' Hoggle said.

'So he is human?' Sarah said. 'How did he get here?'

'How does anyone get anywhere?' said Hoggle. 'He forced his way in. It seemed as though he found some sort of a portal in your world that was giving of an energy or something.. Anyway he just kept pushing on it till it gave way, and he ended up here. Of course here wasn't really anywhere at the time. Just a drab forest.'

'So how did he become magical, does it just happen the longer you stay here? And how did he become king of the goblins?' Sarah found herself suddenly aware that she knew nothing of this world, and while she was curious, she was also growing increasingly worried about how she was going to get home, and when.

'Oh it doesn't just happen to anyone. Look at me, I'm barely magical at all.' Hoggle said. 'It just so happens that this drab forest he landed in, happened to have two very important things in it.'

'Such as?'

'A whole lot of goblins, too stupid an ugly for words, and a whole bunch of magic crystals. And me of course.' Hoggle added loftily.

'Magic crystals? Like the one he offered me? That's where he gets it from?' Sarah suddenly saw herself reaching out for the crystal ball he had offered her. She shuddered. 'Thank god I didn't know they were the source of such power then, I may have chosen differently.'

'Why do you think he offered it to you? Once you touch one the magic starts to seep into you, and eventually you can store it inside you, so you don't need the crystals anymore. It's why he always wears gloves, doesn't want his magic to seep out see? Of course now he can't ever go home again, back to your home I mean. Once you have the magic inside of you, you can't exist permanently outside this world. That's why he was hoping you'd take one. It would have kept you here, without him trying to force you or anything.'

Sarah thought back to something Hoggle had said earlier. 'So in the forest, you were there too? You met him before he was magical?'

'Oh yeah I met him.' Hoggle said grimacing. 'A right bully he was too. In no time at all he had decided to turn this place into his new home, since he wasn't sure how to get back to your world an all. He bullied me into telling him everything I knew about the Underground, and he forced me into searching through the forest with him, looking for a good place to set up his home. That's how we stumbled on to the crystal's, and when Jareth found out they were magical, well.. there was just no turning back for him. He used the magic to form the Labyrinth an the castle, and then bullied the goblins into obeying him an calling him king. Of course that was probably the best thing for the goblins seeing as they are downright stupid. He got them organised and gave them a proper home and stuff. They weren't going to get that on their own, that's for sure.'

'Why wouldn't he want you to tell me this?' Sarah asked. Her head was swimming with images and feelings, and it was making her feel somewhat dizzy.

'He doesn't like feeling or being human. He likes to think he's something else. And there's no way that he would want you to know that he was once from your world. That would put you on the same playing field. He can't stand showing weakness.' Hoggle said.

Sarah stood up abruptly and stormed back down the corridor to Jareth's room.

'Look at him Hoggle.' She snapped. 'I would say he is showing weakness now. He can't even get up. He isn't even awake.'

'Shhh. Keep your voice down. He may be showing weakness now, but I guarantee you he's still dangerous. An he still has a lot of magic left in him.' Hoggle said in a hushed worried voice.

'So now what?' Sarah asked. 'What am I supposed to do?'

'You're supposed to help him get better Sarah.' Hoggle said.

'But I don't know how.' She whispered.

Hoggle looked closely at her. 'Oh I think you do. You'll figure it out.' And with that he turned and left the bedroom pulling the door closed behind him.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Sarah looked down at Jareth's pale drawn face and felt her stomach tighten. She didn't want to see him like that, instead she crossed the room to the window and looked out at the tattered remains of the labyrinth. The knot in her stomach became a ball, and for a moment she thought she might throw up, but when she opened her mouth all that came out was a choked sob. She felt completely overwhelmed at her situation and had no idea how to deal with it.

'Jesus' she whispered. 'Am I ever going to get home?' As soon as the words left her mouth, she wished she hadn't said them, her mind flashed back to her last moments in the Esher room and the look on Jareth's face as she vanished taking his world with her. She felt selfish and foolish and victimised all at once. Sarah didn't like feeling victimised, at least not anymore. Her attitudes had changed from that of a spoiled child to a self-assured adult, and she wasn't going to let them change back. She reminded herself that she chose this, she crossed through the mirror and brought Jareth home. This wasn't like last time, and therefore she wasn't a victim. This time Jareth was the victim, and whilst she doubted that he would see it that way, she knew it was the truth. Sarah stopped gazing blankly out the window, wiped her hands across her eyes, and forced herself to look at him. He was so small, enveloped in his covers and almost swallowed up by the bed. The more she looked at him the more she could see of his old self, the one who had bullied her, and fallen in love with her. Hoggle was right, there was still a huge amount of power in him, you could see it in his face, and she had no doubts that he was still dangerous. But he was no longer a danger to her.

'You're still beautiful.' She whispered softly, and moved towards his bed. She sat on the edge of his bed and took his hand. It was cold, despite his gloves, so she pressed it to her lips. 'I'm not going to leave you Jareth.' She said, and lay down next to him on the bed her face pressed close to his, her mouth next to his ear. 'Can you hear me? I promise I'm not going to leave you.'

Sarah suddenly felt calmer than she had since Jareth had first disappeared from her room days ago. She relaxed into the pillow and enclosed Jareth's hand in both of hers, a sudden weariness coming over her body, and even though she hadn't been awake for long, she felt herself drifting off. 'I'm going to help you get better.' Although she wasn't sure if she actually said that, or if she merely thought it as sleep overtook her.

When Sarah woke up she was in the ruins of the Esher room, which was quite a surprise considering the castle had been recreated, and the Escher room should have been back to its usual confusing glory. It wasn't until she saw herself with Jareth that she realised she was actually dreaming. The two of them were facing off, just as they had at 13 o'clock. Jareth was circling around her, whispering things in her ear and she was nodding in agreement. Wait a minute. In agreement? She didn't remember anything about agreeing with Jareth at any stage, let alone in the Esher room. Why was she nodding her head? What was he saying to her? His words rang in her head, 'Fear me, love me, do as I say and I will be your slave'. Was that was she was agreeing to?

Jareth leaned towards her and Sarah watched as he kissed her other self. When their lips broke apart and he pulled away, his face had been replaced by that of a monster with cruel piercing eyes. He grabbed her roughly and shook her hard, his laugh resonating throughout the ruins. What was most frightening was that the other Sarah didn't seem to know that he was any different, she gazed up at him as if he was the answer to her dreams. It was a horrifying sight and as Jareth continued to shake her they faded away. Sarah tried to shake herself out of the dream but couldn't, her eyes remained rooted to the spot where they had been and she desperately tried to blink their image from her eyes. 'Do you really believe that Sarah?' His voice whispered suddenly in her ear.

She awoke with a jolt, still holding his hand in both of hers. She dropped it as if it were burning her and rolled off the bed, her hands clutching her stomach as a sudden nausea overtook her. She bolted to a corner of the room and vomited.

When her stomach had settled she sat back, and wrapped her arms around herself. She sat like that for what seemed like hours, until a cool washcloth was pushed into her hand, and a blanket was wrapped around her shoulders. Hoggle was in the room with her, cleaning up her mess.

'You don't have to do that.' She said. 'I can clean up after myself.'

'I know Sarah, but I don't mind.' Hoggle said. 'What happened?'

'Just a bad dream.' She shuddered.

'Do you always throw up when you have bad dreams?' He asked casually as he moved around her.

'No.' She said shortly.

Hoggle raised his eyebrow at her but didn't ask anything else.

When she was feeling better, Hoggle showed her around the castle (which was much smaller than she remembered) and told her that she had slept through the rest of the previous day and all through the night. It was now first thing in the morning and Jareth needed to be looked after. Despite the lingering feeling of nausea that the dream had caused, Sarah was determined to keep her promise and so set about caring for Jareth as best she could.

This was how things continued for some time, Sarah looked after Jareth, washing his body and turning him from side to side, and Hoggle looked after Sarah. And the castle, And anything else that came his way. She felt slightly guilty by the constant work he was doing, and often wished that she could help him more. But to be honest she knew she had her hands full looking after Jareth. She was constantly worried about him, whether he was still breathing, or whether he was clean and comfortable, or how much longer he could survive without food. Hoggle had assured her that his magic could sustain him for quite some time, and if Sarah hadn't known he was actually human then she might have believed him.

She found that she could barely leave his side for a minute before she was anxiously rushing back to check if he was awake. Hoggle insisted that she take a walk outside the castle every day, and Sarah found these times to be the hardest of all. She often found herself wondering why this was, and why she cared so much about his wellbeing. After all this was the man that stole her brother, intimidated her, loved her. Her mind kept coming back to that last point. He loved her. As uneasy as that made her, she had to know why.

Like that first night, when she did sleep it was next to Jareth, pressed up along his side his hand in hers. Despite the terror that the dream had invoked in her, she decided not to trust it and hoped fervently that she wouldn't dream anymore. Her hopes were in vain.

On the fourth night she dreamt about Toby. This dream wasn't as vivid as the first one, but it still had the same uneasy feel to it, as if her subconscious was trying to warn her of something. Toby was older, probably about sixteen or seventeen, and she was dancing with him, in the crystal ballroom of course. He was saying something to her, but she couldn't make it out. He kept saying her name, over and over again, but the rest she couldn't understand. Sarah hoped this was a true vision of the future because Toby had grown into a stunning young man. He was tall and strong, with blonde hair cut short. He still had his boyish dimples which showed when he smiled. The sight of him all grown up made Sarah's heart ache. She closed her eyes and leaned into him.

When she reopened them, she discovered that she was dancing with Jareth. Had she always been dancing with him? She had been sure it was Toby a moment ago. It had been Toby hadn't it? Jareth leaned towards her face and whispered in her ear, 'You aren't ever going to see him again Sarah.'

When Sarah woke up this time, she didn't feel sick, just sad. This dream she felt was probably true. She let go of Jareth's hand, and turned her back on him, staring out into space. She didn't sleep again that night.

For the next few days Sarah felt listless. It seemed to her as though Jareth would never wake up, and that she was spending her days caring for something she could never have. It was a selfish thought, but she was tired. And perhaps a little afraid, afraid that part of her didn't want him to wake up. In the back of her mind she knew she was still a little frightened of him, and that whilst caring for him when he was unconscious was one thing, having an actual conversation with him was another thing altogether. When he had been an owl she had felt so close to him, like they were friends, and companions, but would all that change when he woke up? If he woke up?

One afternoon when the weather outside was drizzly and cold and reflecting Sarah's mood quite nicely, she felt something change inside her and curled up on the bed next to Jareth and looked into his face.

'Can you wake up now please Jareth.' She whispered. 'Please wake up now.'

His face was still ghostlike and drawn but it seemed to her as if he was a touch more at peace, more relaxed somehow.

'I'm sorry I haven't spoken to you much since I came.' She hadn't spoken a word to him since her promise the first night. 'I couldn't bring myself to talk to you before, it's as if I was afraid that you might talk back.' She brought her hand up to stroke his face gently. 'But I'm not afraid anymore. Do you understand? I'm not afraid of you. You have to wake up Jareth. I have to know.'

'Know what Sarah?' He was before her in his beautiful blue jacket, and they were dancing in the crystal ballroom.

Sarah realised with a start that she had fallen asleep, and that this was not real, only a dream. 'I won't talk to you in a dream Jareth. I won't. You have to wake up.'

'You're the one who's dreaming' He said with a smile.

Sarah didn't answer.

'Can we keep dancing at least?' He held her to him.

Still she didn't answer.

'Why is it that you could talk to me as an owl Sarah, but not as a human? Do I terrify you so much?' He cocked his head to one side and fixed his eyes on her. 'Perhaps you haven't considered the fact that you terrify me?'

Sarah turned her face up to look at him. Her terrify him? The idea was so completely absurd that she almost laughed. But something stopped her, the image of Jareth perched on her windowsill sprang into her mind. The way he looked when he was stretching his wings, when he would perch on her shoulder, when he would play with Toby. Why do all that as an owl? When he could have spoken to her as an equal. A human. She closed her eyes.

Jareth's voice shook her out of her thoughts. 'What must you know Sarah?'

She then realised that she was awake, Jareth's face was mere inches away from hers on the pillow. Had she really just been dreaming? It seemed so real.

'I need you to wake up Jareth.' She whispered. 'I need to know if I love you.'


End file.
